Yarn guide



April 18, 1967 T. ELPITTS ETAL 3,314,620

YARN GUIDE Filed Sept. 28, 1964 INVENTORS THOMAS E. PITTS RICHARD I. WALDEN v ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,314,620 YARN GUIDE Thomas E. Pitts, Cranston, and Richard I. Walden, Warwick, R.I., assignors to Leesona Corporation, Warwick, R.I., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Sept. 28, 1964, Ser. No. 399,600 7 Claims. (Cl. 242-48) This invention relates to yarn guides for textile winding machines and is concerned more specifically with a yarn guide adapted to temporarily engage a moving strand of yarn and, after passage of a predetermined interval, to release the strand. It may, for example, find application to a winding machine having a constantly traverse means and a package which must achieve normal rotating speed from rest position, the guide of the invention directing the yarn to the package until normal speed has been reached and then releasing the yarn to the traverse means.

In US. Patent 2,764,362 to Goodhue et al., entitled Winding Machine, issued Sept. 25, 1956, there is disclosed and claimed a fully automatic winding machine for Winding yarn, or the like, into various forms of packages, especially cones. In essence, the machine of this patent consists of a winding section including a winding mandrel mounted for controlled movement between a winding position, a braking position, and a reverse rotation position and a driving drum for the winding mandrel which is provided with an endless groove to traverse the yarn being wound upon the mandrel; an end-finding and reuniting section, operable in the event of thread breakage, including a knotter and separate means for finding the respective free ends of the broken yarn and for conveying them to the knotter to be joined together; a preliminary yarn servicing section including means for detecting, tensioning, and cleaning the yarn supplied to the mandrel; and an enclosed control section for superintending the various other sections and controlling the functioning thereof. In the arrangement of the patent, the yarn knotter was supported on a part of the machine frame at a site slightly forwardly and adjacent to one end of the winding mandrel and the driving drum therefor.

As already indicated, upon the thread breakage during the winding operation, the machine was equipped with means for locating both of the free ends of the broken yarn and for delivering these ends to the knotter, which, after re-uniting the ends, released the yarn to the traversing groove of the driving drum, whereby winding could proceed as before. During the end-finding sequence and incidentally thereto, the winding mandrel was moved first to braking position to halt its forward rotation and then to reverse rotation position at which the mandrel was rotated backwardly to allow the delivery end of the broken thread to be extricated from the wound convolutions of the package on the mandrel, engaged by a suitably designed device and delivered to the knotter. When the yarn ends had been re-united by the knotter, the winding mandrel was moved to braking position to halt reverse rotation and then to winding position to reinitiate normal advance of the thread onto the package. All the while these several operations were being performed, the rotation of the grooved driving roll proceeded at full speed with the result that when the thread was released by the knotter, it was immediately engaged by the groove of the roll and traversed back and forth onto the package at the same rate as for normal winding. However, the timing of the release of the yarn from the knotter substantially coincided with the movement of the winding mandrel to normal winding position, at which stage the winding mandrel had essentially zero speed of rotation and an appreciable interval necessarily had to pass before the mandrel had regained normal operating speed by virtue of frictional contact with the peripheral surface of the driving drum.

During this interval, the yarn was being traversed at the regular rate but was being advanced, at least at the beginning, at a much reduced rate. Consequently, instead of being wound in the usual convolutions upon the package, the yarn was merely zig-zagged in closely spaced loops, i.e., laid in a compressed sinuous pattern, on the package periphery with the period of the loops growing longer and longer until the package had finally achieved normal take-up speed to lay down the convolutions in the normal pattern. The existence on the package of such zig-zag loops was found to be quite objectionable when the yarn was processed subsequently, as during weaving, rewinding, et-c., since they naturally tended to introduce unexpected slack'as well as to slough off the package and form snarls or become entangled in parts of the machine.

All automatic winders must be equipped with means adapted to deal with breakage or other interruption taking place in the strand of yarn during the winding operation. No matter how carefully a strand is processed prior to rewinding into a commercial package, usually referred to in the art as coning, it is virtually impossible to prevent interruptions from occurring; at the very least there will be interruptions between the several supply packages being wound as most commercial packages incorporate the yarn from more than one supply package; consequently, all automatic winders are subject to the basic requirement of being adapted to cope with the strand interruption and to automatically re-unite the strand for continued winding.

In U.S. Patent 3,055,602 to Steele, entitled with Delayed Yarn Release sued Sept. 25, 1962, there is disclosed and claimed a device for attachment to winding machines, as for example, the winding machine disclosed in US. Patent 2,764,362, which will avoid the above-mentioned problems associated with the period of time during which the mandrel and package are regaining normal operating speed. This device is a guide member designed to temporarily retain the moving strand of yarn in a position displaced from the traversing mechanism. The guide member comprises an elongated tubular member having a helical groove extending along its periphery and mounted for free rotation. As the yarn package winding operation is initiated, the yarn is released from the knotter and rests on one end of the tubular guide member rather than immediately engaging the groove of the traverse roll. As the rate of rotation of the package progressively increases, the yarn being drawn over the tubular guide causes it to rotate at a continually increasing rate. At the same time, the helical groove causes the yarn to progress from the end of the guide where the yarn initially rested towards the opposite end of the guide. As the yarn approaches the opposite end of the guide member, the package has reached normal operating speed, and the yarn passes over the end of the guide, dropping into the endless groove of the traverse roll for normal operation.

This novel guide member allows the winding mandrel and package to accelerate from an essentially zero speed to normal rotational speed without the yarn zig-zagging onto the package in closely spaced loops. In subsequent operations using the yarn package, there will be no unexpected slack or slough off which could form snarls or entanglements in parts of the machine.

The same winding machine is frequently used to wind yarn packages of different sizes. Also, the tendency in recent years has been to package yarn in increasingly larger diameter cones. With the winding of varying sizes of cones, and particularly these larger cones, has come Yarn Guide for Winding Machines, is-

the attendant problem of a greater amount of time being required for the winding mandrel to reach operating speed before the yarn is released from the tubular guide, simply due to the greater inertia of these larger packages. It is impossible to use a longer tubular guide member since this member of necessity must be shorter than the length of the traverse roll to avoid the yarn dropping off the end of the member beyond the con-fines of the traverse roll.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a simple device which is adapted to receive the yarn from the knotter after reunion of the broken ends thereof and temporarily supplant the grooved driving roll as the guiding means for the yarn for a period of time sufficient for the package to regain its normal speed of rotation.

Another object of the present invention is a delayed action yarn guide upon which the yarn is deposited by the knotter of an automatic winding machine, said guide being adapted to retain the yarn thereon until the passage of a selected predetermined interval of time, depending on the size and inertia of the package being wound, to allow the package to achieve normal speed of rotation and then discharge the yarn onto the periphery of a traverse roll for delivery to the normally rotating package.

A further object of the invention is an elongated tubular guide having a helical groove on the periphery thereof and supported at one end from the frame of the winding machine for rotation with respect thereto, the lead angle of said groove being inclined forwardly and outwardly toward the supported end, the axis of rotation of the tubular member extending in spaced parallel relationship to the axis of the traverse roll of the machine to maintain the path of the yarn passing over the guide out of the endless groove of the traverse roll, the opposite end of the tubular member terminating within the longitudinal confines of the traverse roll, whereby yarn deposited on the roller between its ends will engage the peripheral helical groove and cause the tubular member to rotate as the yarn advances, the rate of rotation of the member being controlled by a selected amount of braking re sistance and resulting in the yarn being displaced axially of the member away from the supported end and finally dropped off the opposite end onto the traverse roll.

An additional object of the invention is a guide adapted to temporarily maintain a moving strand in a position displaced from the normal path thereof, which guide is in the form of an elongated tube, having a helically grooved periphery, mounted for rotation with its axis in spaced apart, substantially transverse relationship to the normal path of one strand, one end of the tube being essentially unconstrained to permit the strand to move off that end and return to its normal path, the direction of the lead angle of the groove relative to the direction of travel of the strand being away from the unconstrained end, means for applying selectively varying amounts of braking resistance to the rotation of the guide whereby passage of the strand over the member causes the member to rotate, the groove shifting the yarn axially toward the unconstrained end for ultimate discharge from the end, the time required for the yarn to reach the unconstrained end depending upon the amount of braking resistance applied.

These and other objects and advantages will appear from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a view in front elevation of the guide of the present invention in operative association with a winding mandrel, and a grooved package driving and yarn traverse roll for the mandrel;

FIGURE 2 is an expanded view of the braking device associated with the tubular guide member;

FIGURE 3 is a side elevation in section of the braking device of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 4 is a transverse view of a part of the braking device taken along the line 4-4 of FIGURE 3.

Before beginning the detailed description of the guide of the invention, attention should perhaps be directed to the fact that while the guide was particularly designed for use in association with the winding machine of U.S. Patent 2,764,362 and, for purposes of illustration, is shown in connection with the related components of such a machine, it is adapted to be employed with other types of winding machines as well and will, in fact, find application with any system for winding yarn which includes a constantly moving yarn traverse member, whether in the form of a grooved roller or otherwise, and a winding mandrel which at some time during the winding operation must achieve winding speed from essentially a rest condition.

Indeed, the present guide has utility whenever a moving strand is intended to be temporarily maintained in a position displaced with respect to its normal path and, after an interval of time, permitted to return to its normal path.

Turning now to a detailed description of the invention, there is shown in the drawings only enough of the related structure of the machine of U.S. Patents 2,764,362 and 3,055,602 as is necessary to an understanding of the application of the invention thereto. Thus, numeral 10 designates the delivery package being wound upon a conical yarn holder 12 supported on a winding mandrel 14. Mandrel 14 is mounted for rotation upon a shaft 16 which is connected to the remainder of the winding machine (not shown) in such a way as to permit the package to grow in size as the yarn is wound thereupon. In the drawings, the machine is set up for the winding of a conical package or cop but it will be appreciated that other shapes and types of packages could be wound as well by replacing the conical mandrel and yarn holder With other mandrels and holders appropriate to the formation of the particular package desired.

Package 10, holder 12, and mandrel '14 are adapted to be rotated by frictional contact of the package surface with the periphery of an elongated cylindrical driving drum or roll 18 disposed upon a shaft 20 for rotation therewith. As already indicated, shaft 20 is subject to constant rotation, the means by which the shaft is driven being omitted here. Drum 18 is provided on its periphery with an endless groove 22 which is adapted to engage the yarn being delivered to package 10 and traverse that yarn back and forth lengthwise of the package, the axis of the drum being disposed, for that reason, generally at right angles to the path of the yarn to package 10.

Means are provided for imparting rearward movement to the package from the driving position shown in FIG- URE 1 to a rest position to bring the package to rest when yarn flow is interrupted. This movement is explained in U.S. Patent 2,764,362 but such movement has no bearing on the present subject matter and is not described here. 7

Located adjacent the left end (FIGURE 1) of package 10 and drum 18 is a vertically arranged bracket 24 forming a part of the rigid frame of the machine, only the upper end of that bracket being visible in the drawings. Attached to this end of bracket 24 is a yarn knotter 26 comprising a box-like housing containing the operative mechanism of the knotter. The details of the knotter form no part of the present invention but may be and preferably are substantially the same as those disclosed and claimed in U.S. Patent 2,670,230 to Goodhue.

Support member 39 is secured in position on frame bracket 24 by means of nuts and bolts 31 which pass through the base of the support member 30 and frame bracket 24. A stub shaft 40 has one of its ends embedded in bracket 24 and extends horizontally from said bracket 24 in spaced parallel relationship to the axis of drum 18 at a level spaced vertically above the drum axis. The inner end of stub shaft 40, i.e., the end remote from bracket 24, is spaced horizontally from the end of support member 30, this space extending preferably over a major portion of and within the confines of the drum 18. Journaled for rotation in the space between support member 30 and bracket 40 is an elongated tubular member 32 formed for example, of a plastic such as nylon and provided on its periphery with a narrow helical groove 34. At its right end (FIGURE 1) tubular member 32 is recessed to receive a concealed thrust bearing (not shown) for supporting tubular member 32 for rotational movement on the end of support member 30. The left end of the tubular member 32 is mounted for rotational movement on stub shaft 40, the details of which will be described later.

The purpose of member 32 with its helically grooved periphery is to receive the re-united thread as it is released from knotter 26, the thread finding its way into a portion of groove 34 and causing the member to rotate by virtue of frictional engagement of the thread with the groove side walls, such rotation, due to the inclination of the groove, gradually advancing the thread along the length of the member until it passes off the right end thereof and descends onto periphery of drum 18 to be engaged by groove 22 and traversed onto package 10. To this end the leading angle of helical groove 34 must be such as to advance the thread to the right toward the free end of member 32. In the arrangement shown in the drawings, the thread passes over and around member 32. Groove 34 must be right hand in character, which is to say that the leading angle of groove 34 extends from right to left in the direction of travel of the yarn. Considered more generally, the leading angle of the groove must always be away from, with respect to the direction of the yarn travel, the end of the tubular member from which the yarn is to be discharged. For example, if the yarn in FIGURE 1 were travelling in the opposite direction, i.e., toward the observer, and was to leave off the same end, the lead angle would have to be opposite to that shown; but if it was to leave off the opposite end, the lead angle would be the same.

It will be seen that the interval that the thread is retained on member 32 is determined by three conditions: the speed of travel of the yarn, the lead angle of helical groove 34, and the effective length of member 32; that is, the distance on the member between the point at which the yarn is deposited thereon and the end from which the yarn leaves. Although by various combinations of these conditions the member can be designed to retain the thread thereon for varying intervals, these conditions cannot be adjusted to retain the thread for the period of time required for large, heavy packages to attain normal operating speed. Though the time period can be extended by having a very small lead angle of the helical groove 34, this has substantial limitations, since a certain amount of friction between the yarn must exist and this friction is principally a function of the lead angle helical groove 34.

Thus far the description has been confined essentially to the parts of the winding machine disclosed in US. Patents 2,764,362 and 3,055,602, which establish a context for the description of the present invention.

In accordance with the present invention, a sleeve 0r enclosing cap 42 is secured by means of a set screw 44 t0 stub shaft 40 at a position such that the tapered end of the stub shaft extends into the large recess in the cap 42.

The novel braking device is contained within the large recess of the cap and extends into one end of the tubular guide member 32. It comprises a central core or seating member 46 which has a transverse bore 48 extending through it to receive a coil spring 50 and two ball detents 52. A locking sleeve 54 having a plurality of shallow sockets 56 at predetermined locations along its internal surface is slid over the seating member 46 and detents 52. The locking sleeve 54 can be rotated about seating member 46 and is held against axial displacement by retaining member 53 which is press fitted over the smaller end of the seating member 46.

On the opposite end of the seating member 46, and arranged symmetrically about its periphery are a plurality of pockets or recesses 60 the sides of which are open to the side surface of the seating member 46. On the same side of the seating member 46, at the center, is a thrust bearing 62. An end flange 64 is press fitted over the thrust bearing, enclosing the open sides of the recesses 60.

The recesses 60 each contains a braking segment 68 which is an elongated member having arcuate ends. The segment dimensions are such that the segments will easily enter and fall out of the recesses, but at the same time cannot be rotated about an axis parallel to the axis of the seating member while retained therein. Extending axially from said locking sleeve 54 are a plurality of locking dogs 70 which are equal in number to the number of recesses 60. When the locking sleeve 54 is retained by a set of sockets 56 and detents 52 in a predetermined position, the locking dogs 70 will at least partially cover the entrances to the recesses 60 thereby retaining the braking segments 68 within their respective recesses. The locking dogs 70 are spaced unequal distances from each other such that as said locking sleeve 54 is rotated in one direction about said seating member 46 to successive positions, determined by other sockets 56 into which the detents 52 are pressed, entrances to the recesses 60 will be opened successively, allowing the braking segments 68 to be released from their respective recesses. In FIGURE 4, for example, the four locking dogs 70 are arranged such that upon rotating the locking sleeve counter-clockwise, first the left recess will be opened, followed by the right recess, and finally the top and bottom recesses will be opened simultaneously. By rotating the locking sleeve clockwise, the recesses will be closed in the reverse order, pushing the braking segments 68 back into their respective recesses 60. This operation is facilitated by the leading edges of the locking dogs '70 being tapered to cooperate with the arcuate edges of the braking segments 68.

The above-described unit is secured to the end of the tubular guide member 32 by press fitting the exterior surface of the retaining member 58 into the tubular guide member and against plug 66. With the braking segments 68 secured in their respective recesses by locking dogs 70, the braking device is inserted into the enclosing cap 42 already mounted on the winding machine such that the tapered end of stub shaft 46 passes into thrust bearing 62. The tapered end of support member 30 is then inserted into the thrust bearing in the opposite end of the tubular guide member 32 and the base of support member 36 is secured to the machine by nuts and bolts 31. In this position, the tubular guide member 32 will freely rotate.

The operation of the guide member 32 and related braking device are dependent principally upon the count of the yarn being wound, although the size and Weight of the cone packages being wound will be a further consideration. Thus, when yarns of fine counts are being wound it may be determined that braking of the: tubular guide member 32 will not be necessary, since the yarn of the finer counts has a relatively low coeflicient of friction. Therefore, as these yarns are pulled through the helical groove 34 the mass of the tubular member alone may suffice to retard rotation of the tubular member so that the yarn is delivered axially thereof at a rate sufliciently slow to allow the package 10 to attain its winding speed before the yarn is dropped in groove 22. Under these conditions, the guide member will be operated in a manner identical with that described in US. Patent 3,055,602. However, if the yarn to be wound is of a courser count, it is readily apparent that considerably more friction between the yarn and tubular member 32 is involved and that, consequently, the tubular member 32 will tend more readily to respond to the frictional pull of the yarn running through groove 34 whereupon the tubular member will rotate faster to deliver the yarn to the traverse roll 18 more quickly. In such cases, it becomes necessary to brake the rotation of tubular member 32, once the yarn is released from the knotter, to retain the yarn on the guide member for a period of time suflicient to allow the package 10 to come up to its winding speed before depositing the yarn in the endless groove 22 of drum 18. This is accomplished by applying a braking force to the normal rotation of the tubular member by means of the abovedescribed braking device whereby the yarn will take a substantially longer period of time to traverse the full length of the helical groove on the exterior surface of the tubular guide member. Sufficient time will lapse therefore for the cone to regain full operating speed before the yarn drops off the end of the guide member onto the traversing device. Of course, there is superimposed on the considerations of the particular count of yarn being wound, the additional factor of package size and weight. Since it is obvious that a more massive package will have greater inertia and, therefore, require a longer time to attain its winding speed than a relatively smaller package it follows that if yarn re-uniting is to be accomplished only on packages of substantial size and weight, the brake would be set to apply proportionately greater force than if yarn re-uniting is to be accomplished on packages of comparatively small size and weight.

The braking device is placed in operation by inserting a pin in hole 72 through the side of enclosing cap 42. The tubular guide member 32 is then manually rotated until the pin drops into recess 74 in the periphery of locking sleeve 54, thus preventing the locking sleeve from rotating with the tubular guide member 32. At this point the indicium 76 on the exterior surface of the tubular guide member 32 will be in line with the first of the indicia 78 on the enclosing cap 42, the braking segments all being locked in their respective recesses. The tubular guide member may then be manually rotated to cause indicium 76 to line up with any of the other indicia 78. The tubular guide member 32 will be retained in any of these positions by detents 52 which will be pressed into respective sockets 56. As the tubular guide member is rotated away from its initial position, progressively more recesses 60 will be opened as the locking dogs 7% progressively rotate away from the entrances to these recesses. This will allow a progressively larger number of braking segments 68 to partially slip out of their respective recesses 60, the leading arcuate ends of which will come in contact with the internal surface of enclosing cap 42.

The number of braking segments which the operator will choose to release will be determined by the count of yarn being wound and the size and consequent inertia of the cone to be wound. The coarser the yarn count and larger and heavier the cone, the greater the number of braking segments which must be released. Conversely, the finer the yarn count and smaller and lighter the cone to be wound, the lesser the number of braking segments which must be released. Once the operator has set the locking sleeve at the desired position, he will then remove the pin from the hole 72 and recess 74, allowing the tubular guide member and locking sleeve to again rotate as a single unit.

During operation of the tubular guide member 32, the yarn will pass over the guide member in the helical groove 34. Friction between the yarn and the helical groove will cause the guide member to rotate, thereby carrying the yarn towards the opposite end of the guide. With braking friction applied through the above-described device, the guide member will be unable to rotate at as fast a rate as it would if it were freely rotating. As a result substantially more yarn will slip through the helical groove and consequently, the yarn will take longer to reach the end of the tubular guide member 32.

Braking friction is applied by the arcuate ends of the braking segments which are thrust outwardly by centrifugal force and come in contact with and rub the internal surface of enclosing cap 4-2 as the guide member 32 rotates, the enclosing cap 42 remaining stationary. It can readily be seen that the more braking segments 68 there are in contact with the enclosing cap 42, the more braking friction will be applied, further slowing the rate of rotation of the tubular guide member 32. Conversely, the more braking segments 68 are locked in their respective recesses, the less braking friction will be applied, allowing the guide member 32 to rotate faster and retaining the strand for a lesser period of time.

The above-described braking device may be made from any number of suitable materials, including metal or plastic. Nylon has been found to be a preferred material for most of the elements. The braking segments 68 are generally made of metal; bronze has been found well suited for this purpose. The enclosing cap 42 should be made of a hard metal such as steel to withstand the abrading on its internal surface by the braking segments 68.

From what has been said with respect to guide member 32, it will be seen that the convolutions formed on the yarn package while the tube is exercising control over the placement of those convolutions will not conform to the regular pattern laid down by groove 22 of driving drum 18 during normal winding, but, instead, will consist of closely spaced windings of yarn lying consecutively in one direction on the face of the package. The presence of such windings on the package has been found to be completely satisfactory as they are free of the zigzag yarn loops.

Several possible variations in the design and construction of the invention have already been indicated and those skilled in the art will appreciate that others will be possible with-out departing from the spirit of the invention.

' What is claimed is:

1. In a machine for winding a strand onto a rotating package, including a movable traverse member for guiding the strand upon the package, wherein said package is brought from a rest condition up to speed while said traverse member is moving, and a rotatable tubular guide mounted on said machine in spaced relationship to the path of movement of said traverse member, said guide being rotatable to advance the strand toward and over one end of the guide as the guide rotates, said guide being so located that it retains the strand spaced away from the traverse member until the strand passes over the end of the guide, the improvement which comprises, a stationary sleeve member, a seating member within said sleeve member and secured to one end of said tubular guide for rotation therewith, said seating member having at least one recess in its periphery, a braking segment slidably retained in said recess and capable of contacting the interior surface of the sleeve member, whereby the rate of rotation of said tubular guide will be slowed by said braking segment frictionally engaging said sleeve member.

2. A winding machine as in claim 1 wherein said seating member contains in its periphery a plurality of equally spaced recesses, each containing a braking segment.

3. A winding machine as in claim 2 wherein means are provided for locking portions including all of said braking segments in their respective recesses out of contact with the interior surface of said sleeve.

4. A winding machine as in claim 3 wherein said locking means comprises a locking sleeve rotatably mounted on said seating member and having a plurality of locking dogs capable of simultaneously locking any portion including all of said braking segments in their respective recesses by rotating said locking sleeve, whereby the amount of braking friction applied to said rotatable tubular guide may be selected.

5. A winding machine as in claim 1 wherein said braking segment comprises an elongated member having arcuate ends which while retained in said recess is incapable of rotating about an axis parallel to the axis of said seating member. I

6. A winding machine as in claim 1 wherein means are provided for locking said braking segment in said recess out of contact with the interior surface of said sleeve.

7. A yarn guide for temporarily maintaining a moving strand in a position displaced from the normal path thereof and for releasing said strand after a selected predetermined interval, said guide comprising a tubular member mounted for rotation at a locus spaced from the normal path of the strand, one end of said member being essentially unconstrained to permit the strand to pass thereover and return to said normal path, said member having on at least a portion of its peripheral surface a spiral groove extending to said unconstrained end to receive and frictionally engage said strand to cause said member to rotate, the direction of said groove being such as to advance the strand, as the member rotates, toward and over the un constrained end of said member, and a braking device comprising a stationary sleeve member, a seating member within said sleeve member and secured to one end of said tubular member for rotation therewith, said seating member having a plurality of symmetrically arranged recesses in its periphery, braking segments slidably retained in said recesses and capable of contacting the interior surface of said sleeve member, and locking means comprising a locking sleeve rotatably mounted on said seating member and having a plurality of locking dogs capable of simultaneously locking and. releasing any portion including all of said braking segments in and from their respective recesses by rotation of said locking sleeve, whereby said predetermined interval may be selected by adjusting said locking sleeve to apply a corresponding amount of braking friction.

References Cited by the UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,158,432 11/1915 Benoit 242-155 X 2,519,882 8/ 1950 Bullard et al. 2,624,527 1/ 1953 Von K'ohorn 242-155 2,724,065 11/1955 Saxl 242-155 X 3,026,063 3/1962 Seidl 242-155 3,055,602 9/1962 Steele 242--18 FOREIGN PATENTS 770,037 3/ 1957 Great Britain.

STANLEY N. GILREATH, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN A MACHINE FOR WINDING A STRAND ONTO A ROTATING PACKAGE, INCLUDING A MOVABLE TRAVERSE MEMBER FOR GUIDING THE STRAND UPON THE PACKAGE, WHEREIN SAID PACKAGE IS BROUGH FROM A REST CONDITION UP TO SPEED WHILE SAID TRAVERSE MEMBER IS MOVING, AND A ROTATABLE TUBULAR GUIDE MOUNTED ON SAID MACHINE IN SPACED RELATIONSHIP TO THE PATH OF MOVEMENT OF SAID TRAVERSE MEMBER, SAID GUIDE BEING ROTATABLE TO ADVANCE THE STRAND TOWARD AND OVER ONE END OF THE GUIDE AS THE GUIDE ROTATES, SAID GUIDE BEING SO LOCATED THAT IT RETAINS THE STRAND SPACED AWAY FROM THE TRAVERSE MEMBER UNTIL THE STRAND PASSES OVER THE END OF THE GUIDE, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES, A STATIONARY SLEEVE MEMBER, A SEATING MEMBER WITHIN SAID SLEEVE MEM- 